History and Civics Question Bank for Class IX – “Sources of History”

15 Short Questions with Answers on “Sources of History” for Class IX Students (History and Civics ):

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Q1. What are the different archaeological sources?

Arts: Monuments, coins, inscriptions, cave paintings, potsherds, plant and animal remains are the different archaeological sources.

Q2. Mention any two languages which were used in ancient India.

Arts: Pali and Prakrit were the two prominent languages in use.

Q3. Why coins are considered an important source of history?

Arts: Coins are an important source because they corroborate the information derived from literature, and often modify or amplify it.

Q4. What are inscriptions?

Ans: Inscriptions are written records.

Q5. Give two reasons why inscriptions are important.

Ans: Inscriptions are important because:

i. Knowledge of ancient political history is derived largely from inscriptions

ii. Information can be gathered about the social, economic and religious life

Q6. Give one reason each for the importance of plant and animal remains.

Ans: Plant remains have not survived but seeds and charred remains of lumps of wheat and barley point to the kinds of crops grown. Animal remains indicate their usage. They were used primarily for dietary purpose and hunting.

Q7. Why is Bhimbetka important?

Ans: Bhimbetka is a cave in Madhya Pradesh which is important for its cave paintings. These cave paintings tell us not only about the artistic inclinations of early man but also the various activities like hunting and fishing, pursued by him.

Q8. Mention any three books on religion which help us to reconstruct the ancient history of India.

Ans: Vedas, Puranas and the Mahabharata are the three books which help us to recon­struct the ancient history.

Q9. Name a book on history written in the ancient period.

Ans: Rajatarangini written by Kalhana in the eleventh century is a book written on history in the ancient period.

Q10. How does Sangam literature help us in our understanding of history?

Ans: Sangam literature is a major source of information regarding social, economical and political life of people living in the southern part of India in the early Christian centuries.

Q11. Name any three biographical works which act as sources of history.

Ans: Some of the biographical works which act as sources of history are:

i. Harshacharita by Banabhatta

ii. Vikramankadev acharita by Bilhana

iii. Prithviraja Raso by Chand Bardai

Q12. Mention two court chronicles of the medieval period.

Ans: Tabaqat-i-Nasiri by Minhaj-ud-din and Ain-i-Akbari by Abul Fazl are the two court chronicles of the medieval period.

Q13. Who are the authors of Baburnama and Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri?

Ans: Babur and Jahangir are the authors of Baburnama and Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri respectively.

Q14. How are archival documents important?

Ans: Archival documents comprising state papers and official and private documents possessed by individuals are of great historical value. For e.g. records of Portuguese, Dutch and French companies are useful for historical reconstruction of seventeenth and eighteenth century India. Archival documents are primarily important from the point of view of economic history as well as political history to a certain extent.

Q15. Name any three foreign travellers who visited India in the ancient period.

Ans: Megasthenes, Fa Hien and Hiuen Tsang visited India in the ancient period.

Q16. Who was Alberuni? What was his primary contribution to Indian history?

Ans: Alberuni was an Arab scholar who visited India in the 8^th century.

He wrote Tahakik-i-Hind in AD 1030, which is a veritable mine of information about India and her people.

Q17. Name one important written work of Kautilya and Panini?

Ans: Arthasastra was written by Kautilya and Ashtadhyayi by Panini.

Q18. Name two Ceylonese chronicles and what information does they supply?

Ans: The Ceylonese chronicles, Mahavamsa and Dipavamsa, shed information on the Mauryan dynasty and the Buddhist religion.

Q19. What do you understand by a ‘stratified site’?

Ans: Sometimes archaeological remains of different times are found in the same place at different layers or levels. Such a site is called a stratified site.

Q20. Name three methods used for dating.

Ans: Radio-carbon dating, dendrochronology and DNA testing are some of the methods used for dating.